Looking for ambitious tennis partner(s)

I don’t think some of you guys realize what it takes to get to a solid open level, let alone a futures level. It’s one thing if some of you were top players before, took time off and want to “come back”. But most of you seem to have zero experience at a high level and hope that in your 30s or 40s you’re going to begin your progression. I have played challengers in my early 20s, stopped for 10 years and just recently came back. It is extremely difficult and a harsh dose of reality trying to get back into any type of form. I have a feeling I could out hit most of you and I wouldn’t even dream of playing a futures tournament at this point. Tony Lars is a good example of the minimum level you should be at to even begin thinking of doing what you’re doing. It think some of you are just straight up delusional.

@ develito......i not sure what to say, as im not sure if u are serious about joining or not, but ill assume for a minute that u are!? What would be ur goal, what would it take to get u there and is that compatible with what we r talking about doin? Why not be concerned about that instead of being concerned or even irritated it seems, with the goals and assumptions of others? U believe u could out hit me and whoever, u could be right or maybe not (if that is u playing with the cap in the videos that u are linkin to on youtube). What I know is that if u had me and whoever plus a future level player to drill and match play with on a daily basis, that u would have plenty of opposition for that part of ur tennis development inputs to be in place, the rest is up to u, ur talent and hard (and appropriate) work. Playing tournaments is good for ur game but not if it takes alot of time away from working on ur shots, tactics, game plan, fitness, etc etc. But hey, u used to play challangers so that should all be 101 for u right?

@Devilito - Much respect for playing Challengers man! You obviously DO know what it takes.

I'm the first to admit that I don't KNOW what it takes. But I could take a guess, and say...."a hell of a lot more than what I'm doing currently! "

I don't EXPECT to do well at a futures tournament or even get that far, but one things for sure......if I don't try, I NEVER will.......and I'm not getting any younger.

The way I see it, if I spend some time dedicated to tennis for the first time in my life, then....at worst, I'll become a better player for later in life and have a cool experience.....at best, well, who knows.....depends how much and how quickly I can improve.

Obviously I can't speak for other peoples motivations, but I respect peoplespeace regardless, just for thinking outside the box a wee bit.....

As for the vid.....well, it's just got a lot 'hotter' in here. I think I've got a way to share it from China, now I've just gotta get over myself in the name of improving and add the link.

Bracing myself for the criticism......but please, please either make it constructive or funny

Don’t take it the wrong way, I wasn’t trying to make any of my comments personal, just a wake up call speaking from experience. I watched your video, you have potential. That’s all I can tell you. Another thing I can tell you is your footwork, preparation and shot recovery suck. BUT that’s to be expected. When you take lessons at 30 is a pro going to make you run and do sprints and work on footwork? Or are they just going to feed you balls and work on your strokes because that’s what you paid for. Also please don’t confuse footwork with fitness level. You can be a marathon runner or sprinter and still have horrible footwork when it comes to tennis.

A huge part of tennis at high levels is footwork. Standing still your strokes have solid mechanics. Once you start running your game goes from hero to zero. That’s all due to your footwork. Another mistake most people do in practice is they just rally back and forth. Back and forth I can give an ATP pro a good hit and practice. Back and forth is easy. In a match you will never be hitting “back and forth”. Everything will be on the run and end up looking ugly. What you have to do is develop practice drills that force you to move and recover.

The plus side is that at your age and ability I think with 1 year of intensive training you can definitely make a nice jump in skill level.

In terms of this entire project. I’d propose something along the lines of spending 6 months- 1 year before taking the time and money to do this to train and prepare for it. When you get together in a group you want to already be at a confident level so you can start hitting up tournaments and working on the little things intensively. The last thing you want to do is meet up and have to spend 1 year training hard just to get to the point where you should have been originally. Footwork drills, movement and some basic match play should be something you can accomplish on your own.

Not to mention that starting out the program by yourself original will get you into a proper shape that when you meet up you can start paying intensively without it being a shock to your body so you’re not wasting time on recovery and injuries.

@Devilito - Thank you so much for your post. I really, really do appreciate the time you've spent to be constructive and respect your experienced opinion.

What you said, resembles a lot of my own thoughts, but it's great to hear it from an experienced, high-level player. It gives me more confidence that my self analysis is at least 'in the ballpark'.

Yep, footwork is HORRIBLE at this point I know. And hero to zero once I start running, sums it up nicely! (Although obviously not a hero to begin with either) Do you know where I could find good footwork drills on the net by any chance? I've found a few that usually involve a ladder type grid and different patterns. Then, theres the fuzzyyellowballs footwork vid that was interesting. However, I haven't been on court enough to really get down to business and focus on footwork yet.

When I asked the coach in Shanghai about the level of my footwork (wanting him to confirm it was crap and give me some direction) he said, "well, you got to the balls that I was hitting to the corners". I tried to get more in depth, but he struggled with his English and my Mandarin is even worse.

In terms of the project, well, I understand that you think being at a confident level to begin with would be best. I agree. It sounds like peoplespeace might already be there level-wise. As you could see, I'm not, but the idea really resonated with me and depending on the goals and levels of the others in the group, I think it could still be worth a shot for me and at this stage December this year suits me.

Anyway, thanks again for your time Devilito. I really am grateful for it.

@Devilito - Thank you so much for your post. I really, really do appreciate the time you've spent to be constructive and respect your experienced opinion.

What you said, resembles a lot of my own thoughts, but it's great to hear it from an experienced, high-level player. It gives me more confidence that my self analysis is at least 'in the ballpark'.

Yep, footwork is HORRIBLE at this point I know. And hero to zero once I start running, sums it up nicely! (Although obviously not a hero to begin with either) Do you know where I could find good footwork drills on the net by any chance? I've found a few that usually involve a ladder type grid and different patterns. Then, theres the fuzzyyellowballs footwork vid that was interesting. However, I haven't been on court enough to really get down to business and focus on footwork yet.

When I asked the coach in Shanghai about the level of my footwork (wanting him to confirm it was crap and give me some direction) he said, "well, you got to the balls that I was hitting to the corners". I tried to get more in depth, but he struggled with his English and my Mandarin is even worse.

In terms of the project, well, I understand that you think being at a confident level to begin with would be best. I agree. It sounds like peoplespeace might already be there level-wise. As you could see, I'm not, but the idea really resonated with me and depending on the goals and levels of the others in the group, I think it could still be worth a shot for me and at this stage December this year suits me.

Anyway, thanks again for your time Devilito. I really am grateful for it.

Watch this clip of Federer and see how he recovers after every ball hit. He doesn’t just hit and stay in one place and wait for the next ball. Watch him move side to side by side stepping. In your clip you turn sideways, drop your racquet and start running with big steps. You should keep your racquet at ready at all times and take small quick steps so you can set up properly for your next shot. Compare it to your own video and try and imitate him next time.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Def7iMP8G0M

You need to start doing drills that juniors do. Like do line sprints side to side and in a star shape to the service lines. Real sprints too not just lackadaisical.

PS: Don’t worry so much about peoplespeace. You’ve stepped up to post a video of yourself playing. He hasn’t. You can’t just ask people to move half way across the world with you without letting them know a lot more about you. Especially how you look/play etc.

Where do you hit in Shanghai? I've been going at least once a year since '05 - not a lot of courts or good instructors. Century Park is huge - the gov could put a dozen courts in there an still have a ton of room.

And as far as the project, I've seen Shanghai get a lot more expensive since I started going. I like the idea of Asia, but would look for cheaper cities.

I just learned a pretty cool footwork drill after listening to one of those essential tennis podcasts by ian westermann.

Two player drill - no racquest involved: each player stands at service line to start. Receiver keeps hands by hips, wrists touching hips. Not allowed to move hand at all. Thrower uses an underarm throw and can toss the ball anywhere within the service lines. Receiver has to catch the ball with one hand after it bounces once. Then the roles switch, and the person who just caught the ball is now the thrower.

idea is that since you can only move your feet, you have to be extremely accurate in order to catch the ball, since there is very little margin of error.

You can make this drill harder by having a feeder at service line and receiver at baseline. Feeder uses racquet to feed ball and receiver has to catch it with hip-locked hands.

Hey, I should be in Toronto during November if you're around and feel like a hit or to give this drill a go.

My ankle should be okay by then. I'm not too sure of your level, but if you've seen my vid, you should be able to work out if we'd be compatible enough, although I'm afraid I'm not very consistent and will not have practiced much, if at all, by then.

I'm can't think why you wouldn't be able to download the video unfortunately. If you've already seen the Regal courts, I guess it's not too important. If you really want to see it though, maybe I could try sending a link to your email or something?

Hey, I should be in Toronto during November if you're around and feel like a hit or to give this drill a go.

My ankle should be okay by then. I'm not too sure of your level, but if you've seen my vid, you should be able to work out if we'd be compatible enough, although I'm afraid I'm not very consistent and will not have practiced much, if at all, by then.

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yea would love to hit! I'd say I'm about a 4.0. Send me an email: spacediver99@gmail.com so we have each other's contact info

Yeah, I know. Will have to see how much I can play and improve first. We all need goals I guess....

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it's good to have goals, but maybe you're aiming a little too high at the moment. i'd set goals in stages. make it your goal to play in some opens and make it through the first couple of rounds. after that, make it your goals to win an open. then start making loftier goals such as playing and winning a futures. anyhow, good luck.

OP has good form. Keep in mind that touring as a pro is only about 50% ability. It's 25% your fitness and 25% lack of injury. You could be the greatest player in the world but if you have chronic, say, shoulder problems you won't make it.

There is a tremendous amount of luck involved. Somebody rear-ends you in the car and throws out your back and there go all your dreams.

I played golf with a girl in high school (she was so good she played with the guys) who was awarded the Nancy Lopez prize for the most outstanding female amateur in the world. The next year she joined the LPGA, and not long afterward she had an injury that completely derailed her career. Now she sells eyewear.

Great video u posted there! Loved ur serve technique, nice knee bend toss etc. Also saw alot of very nice rally shots. Only incognito is how many lower quality shots u hit per good shot, but i know that ur fully aware of that aspect. I agree with develito that studying shot selection and court positioning will do u good in therms of getting out of situations of running from side to side until eventually mishitting or running out of oxygen!

Ive had a few busy days cleaning and subletting my apart and what not, which means that im heading to Buenos Aires tomorrow afternoon ) So if any serious players are in that part of the world and would like to hit pls let me know.

On monday, a 50k challanger starts in BA, so looking forward to checking out my future opponents hehe (just kiddin!).

Pretty harsh to say accross the board that all tennis pros dont teach you tennis. I have been playing just under 3 yrs and am a 4.0 USTA not self rated. I do have a strong back round in other sports but never played tennis. With a bit of reasearch I found a pro in my area ( doylestown pa) by the name of Jim Klein at doylestown tennis club. He taught me strokes as well as many other things that were correct and easy to pick up. I also know other teachers that do fine jobs. I have a goal of being a strong 4.5 in two more years. I need to get into shape and work with Jim and I am sure I can get there.

@SusanDK and dunc88......glad u liked it ive found it interesting too even if I didnt manage to gather a dream team I promise to keep u updated even in the unlikely event that I fail....!

@ Carl Pierce....well what u say that I said re coaches I didnt say so I wont go into that issue, but I stand by what I said. Im really happy that u have made solid progress from scratch in 3 yrs, would be interesting if u could also let us know if u are keeping up this learning curve. However, i must say that that i think that ur goal of being a strong 4.5 in two yrs is a bit modest given ur progress so far (however i do understand that half a step at this level is alot since it is not a self rated half step), how many hrs are u playing/training per week and of these how many with coach, and is it always individual lessons. And also, how much have u played the last 3 yrs including how many lessons per week?

Ive been in Buenos Aires for 4 days now and has been whatching alot of good tennis during the ongoing challenger but ive also been going to the gym, been hitting the wall some 90 minutes a day and had a 30 min session with a good coach. Im also trying to find my future level player.

Just for the record, prices have risen and exchange rates worsened so the proces i quoted earlier dont hold up any more, but still well cheaper than most of europe.

Being able to go to a less expensive area in warm weather and get training at a good price.

I am a 50 year old 4.0 and wife is 3.5. We love to play tennis and are looking for a place to go. We have a big bundle of ff miles, so we can go pretty much anywhere. We had an exchange student from Argentina who stayed with us for a year, so we always wanted to go down there to visit her.

Peoplespeace have you found some good hitting in Argentina?

Anything with organized mixed doubles play? I also play a lot of singles. We could maybe swing a month or two away and work hard at the tennis this winter. My business allows me to telecommute.

Hey Flying boat! Actually im no longer in Buenos aires, i have been following the South america challanger circuit around buenos aires, santiago, and now sao paolo and my plan is to join an academy in one of these countries as the dream team has not been created. I want to train serious now and not leave things to chance! Regarding Buenos aires and singles and mix doubles, i did manage to play a few matches with good friendly guys but people who could play maybe once a week, re mixed doubles it would be rolling the dice, nothing really organised in BA as far as i know. I suddenly more people should want this we can take it from there and with the freedom u have in ur business it might be doable for u (guys) too. Cheers

@ Uvijek hahahaha nice 1, I agree, if he/she could try why the hell not myself and others, and personally i wouldnt be excluded by some old fashioned view on gender, sex and what not(dont know if that is what happened though, will have to check out the clip)........tennis_balla is lucky that there isnt an envy rule in tennis though

I'm envious? Hardly, I've been there and done that. I'm just amazed at how delusional some people can be, but hey I'm sure the other players will like you a lot. Everyone enjoys an easy first round match, just like that girl in the video who had to play the transsexual who paid her way into the tournament.

I don't think you quite understood the point Uvijek Argen was trying to make. Realistically speaking... the only way you could go from 2.5 to 5.5 in 2 years at the age of 41 is if you went from men's 2.5 to women's 5.5. capeesh?

peoplespeace. I see you are the guy who talked about San Jose Hotel and Tennis Club's some time ago as well. I tried to find out information from them regarding what they offer for mixers or instruction, etc. But they did not respond to any of my emails.

Do you have any further information on them?

Ideally, I would like to go somewhere with my wife and get a lot of tennis in for a reasonable cost.

I'm in Toronto now. All is well here, and I'm trying to plan my moves for the near future. My ankle has taken a lot longer than I would have hoped to get better. I'm going to send Spacediver an email next and try to get out and have a proper hit for the first time in a long time soon.

It looks like you are no longer in BA, but let me know your current plans and maybe, just maybe, we could still make this thing happen.

Hey QiRoy, im currently in Chile, however i dont know what my next move will be, probably leaving for some other country further up north soon, eg Brasil, ecuador, columbia or something like that, before spending new year in punta del este uruguay I think and after that it could be more of south america or more likely india and china. Ive met a french guy here in santiago who plays future qualis, we play regularly which is great otherwise ive taken some lessons and hit with a few decent guys. Progress is as usual too slow for my liking my fitness level is improving as im hitting the gym 3-4 times a week for strength training and cardio.

Hey FlyingBoat, the hotel in san jose was not impressive as such in termes of the rooms the good think was the cheap hitting partners (like 3 usd/hr) once u were satying at the hotel. lessons from pros were like 20 usd. No organised mix play, it was basically a tennis club offering rooms and quite a nice atmosfere at the club restaurant. Nadia Petrova was training there at the time as her coach is an argentine based in costa rica or something like that. But the city of san jose is not exatly a classic holiday spot!!

It sounds like you are frustrated by the level of coaching you have received in the past. I too have had some bad experiences but have finally found a decent coach who is willing to help all situations. I catch up with him 3 times a year now. Unfortunately for you he is in Australia. If your ever over in that area then look him up. His name is Reece and runs full time programs and holiday coaching business. www.playtennis.com.au is the site. He was the frst guy to actually tell me how it is without the BS. He might also have some ides for your training regime. Good luck with that!

@somebeast lessons are around 25-30 usd but u can surely make a deal if u take several lessons a week. But if i were u i would join an academy half time and ask for some flexibility some that u can attend college at the same time. That would prob cost u 6-700 us a month plus u would meet kids ur own age

Hey QiRoy, im currently in Chile, however i dont know what my next move will be, probably leaving for some other country further up north soon, eg Brasil, ecuador, columbia or something like that, before spending new year in punta del este uruguay I think and after that it could be more of south america or more likely india and china. Ive met a french guy here in santiago who plays future qualis, we play regularly which is great otherwise ive taken some lessons and hit with a few decent guys. Progress is as usual too slow for my liking my fitness level is improving as im hitting the gym 3-4 times a week for strength training and cardio.

Hey FlyingBoat, the hotel in san jose was not impressive as such in termes of the rooms the good think was the cheap hitting partners (like 3 usd/hr) once u were satying at the hotel. lessons from pros were like 20 usd. No organised mix play, it was basically a tennis club offering rooms and quite a nice atmosfere at the club restaurant. Nadia Petrova was training there at the time as her coach is an argentine based in costa rica or something like that. But the city of san jose is not exatly a classic holiday spot!!

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How have you been playing against the futures qualifying player? Been playing any sets?

I think at this stage you should try and get the first futures tournament under your belt as soon as possible. It will give any training you do a real shot to know what to expect from that type of competetive match

Well its great to play against future level players but handling their fast heavy balls means that i need to basically learn tennis from scratch again as it is a totally different game where muscling the ball gets u nowhere, so i have embarked on learning proper weight transfer/kinetic chain action where if u prepare and set up correctly tennis ur shots can be very heavy with much less effort even when hitting a fast heavy incomming ball. When i succed with this once in a while im not in doubt that that is the road to go down to be able to compete at future level. So i guess im saying that ive been beaten enough by future (quali) level players to know that i have to make this shift if want to be able to compete with these guys. If i combine this with a top notch serve (that i plan to have!) i have come a long way.

Normally Danes are more realistic than OP (Danish myself).
Dont even try to convince me that a 40+ guy who played tennis for 2 years could be anywhere near the level you described.
I played since I was 9 and was a very talented and top ranked junior, even played div 1 for a few years. today Im 35 and only play a couple of times a week. But even if I played every day I wouldnt win first round of a futures event, even though my technique is flawless and still competing at high level when I feel like playing.